Ridgell's Originals

I should have written this sooner, but have been to Portland and getting ready to be at Shiloh Road in Tyler, Texas this weekend. Besides that, I am still not sure how to speak to this issue. And I know that in many parts of the world it is not even an option. There are not multiple congregations to choose from. So at this point, let me offer a thought or two. The first is that most decisions about where to attend church are relational. People go where they can connect. If they don't form solid relationships, it is not long before they go somewhere else. Those relationships can be found in family, youth groups, Bible class, friends, work friends, or sometimes in other group structures (Shepherding groups, care groups, life groups, etc.).

I don't think most people select churches based on doctrine. Most of my sheep don't wander away because of doctrinal issues, but because they can't connect. In fact, we have people who stay at Southern Hills in spite of doctrinal issues. They stay because we are their family and because we do a good job of helping people understand the difference between important truth and first importance truth. I don't think people select chuches based on the preacher. He may help with the initial impression, but unless you just want superficial involvement, the preacher is not going to make enought difference.

So perhaps the key to growing churches is developing relationships. The way to keep people active and involved is to see them in healthy relationship to others in their church family. Isn't that what fellowship really is...healthy relationships. The issue in my mind is how do we connect people? Do we artificially assign them to a group? We have often tried that and it just doesn't work. Do we expect them to form their own relationships? What if they are shy, or not good at relationships, or don't know how to form them? Can you be so large that it becomes easier to get lost in the crowd than to connect to others on a real basis?

I cannot imagine not worshipping at Southern Hills. Our family is there, our best friends are there, we have lived thru good times and bad with so many people there. In many ways, Southern Hills has been home to us for over 35 years (even when we were going somewhere else).

So help me out here. How do we become a church where everyone is connected?